Painter and art critic. He played a major role in establishing the Art Society. First a lawyer and teacher, he learnt to paint in Vienna and Munich. From 1867 onwards, he was a member of the Kisfaludy Society. He established a school for art teachers on a state commission in 1871 with him as the first director. His most important romantic landscapes were "The Park of the Exiled" and "View from Normafa".

His strict, academic art criticism opposed more recent art styles. It was due to his critiques that Pál Szinyei Merse temporarily retired from art.